20... boys will be boys
Oh boy. This was a hard scene to watch. What is Richard in this scene? THe answer that comes to mind is "A three year old with a big vocabulary." He is such a child in this scene, asking them to bring him a mirror, smashing it on the ground, crying and whining about how he can't see to read. I really appreciate the growing up he's done. I really am impressed with the way he tries to man up and accept what he's been given. But I feel like he was babied all his life and can't GROW UP now. What does his function do and mean? Well, it serves to make him an object of scorn for the court. In the youtube videos, he's basically crawling around on the ground crying, and everyone just stands back and watches. Seriously. If my worst enemy were crawling around in a room full of people, crying and throwing a tantrum, I would still pick her up and tell her to get a hold of herself. No one will do this for Richard, they just watch. It means that no one really cared about him in the first place, except for a select few who are too scared to act or not around. The rest cared about duty, or about God's wishes, or whatever, but they didn't care about Richard. I want to give him a hug and tell him it will be okay.
What is Harry? Harry is what he always has been. He's a man of action, a man of convictions. He basically detests Richard and no longer has to show reverence, but I think he's otherwise the same guy. He's the King now, and it somehow fits my picture of King better. He's got the formal, manly, leadership identity. He listens to the common people (at least he has). Is he a better King? I don't know. What does his identity as a leader and King do? It changes the people who've always served Richard. Suddenly they're tripping over themselves to please the new King. Not all of them seem to like him, but they're afraid. What does his role mean? It means that England has stepped away from the natural order of things or the tradition. He's redefining the meaning of King as not just the one who inherits the role, but the one who can make things happen.
Can he grow up?
That's a good point, that Richard seems unable to grow up, because he's been stunted emotionally and psychologically throughout his reign. Bradley
Bradley
A child in the court
I had been striking down the idea of Richard being childish, but the way you present it makes a good point too. Thinking back, if I think of Richard as a child, it dramatically changes the scene. Or even better, as an over dramatic 18 year old. Oy! I like that you say Harry is what he's always been. While we see a dramatic shift in Richard through the play, Harry seems to stay the same throughout. Level headed, kind of a jerk, but gets his way.
-Renee Ward
Immaturity
Yeah, it's not necessarily that Richard is really young, it's just that he acts it... maybe he's been put into that position by uncles who did everything for him. Even so, he's really hamming it up. Come on, get off your bum, go to your room, and cry by yourself. And don't break things when you're mad!
And Harry is very unchanging. I wonder if he changes more in the other plays that are about him?
Erin Kay Schulz
Richard's tears.
I agree that Richard is being childish. I don't feel compelled to give him a hug though. Maybe if I watched some youtube I would think differently, but more than likely no. He may have no known any better from the start of his kingship, but he shouldn't have been that dense. If he was to be a good king, he would have had some development and growth rather than being selfish, childish and whiney. What goes around comes And I think he's getting it. I think Harry is changing and is definitly in charge, whether it's him being power hungry or cleaning up Richard's mess, I'm not so sure any more.
Megan Baeth-Brison
I wouldn't either
I don't feeling like giving Richard a hug either. When he was in power, he abused his power quite a bit. The cliche of "If you play with fire, you are going to get burned" comes to mind. Richard sought to kill people in his family. He also took the inheritance from one of his cousins. And through it all he showed no remorse. The only remorse he showed was for himself, and how he didn't like his current predicament. I do not think of him as a sympathetic character, and therefore do not want to give him hug. One thing that I thought was interesting was his wife's devotion to him, even at the end. You would have thought by the way he acted that he was unlovable, and that he and the Queen had an arranged marriage. Even when he was no longer king, she showed love for him. I think she earned some major brownie points in the audience's eyes.